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Sheffield Museums Blow

I received this email from a friend today and thought I would share it. If you live in or near Sheffield then it will be of interest.

Dear All,

I’m writing to you because either you live here in Sheffield or you have an interest in Sheffield’s cultural wellbeing.

As you may have heard Museums Sheffield (who run Millennium Gallery, Graves Gallery and Weston Park Museum) have been dealt a devastating funding blow this week when they failed to get Renaissance funding from the Arts Council, you can read about it in the Guardian here:

Not getting this funding means a 30% cut in Museums Sheffield’s annual budget which in turn means redundancies, a reduction of learning activity and none of the high profile collaborations with Tate, V&A and the British Museum which have resulted in a first class exhibition programme over the last few years rather than the sort of stymied municipal displays you can often find in regional museums and galleries.

Clearly it's a major blow to Sheffield if our museums service degenerates in this way and will have a damaging ripple effect on the rest of the cultural scene.

I’m sure you can compose your own email but salient points might be:
o Museums Sheffield provides an excellent and museums service which will now be compromised – you might want to include your favourite exhibitions of the past few years.
o Museums Sheffield serves a diverse and large audience – ‘Great Art for Everyone’ in the words of the Arts Council.
o A decimated museums service will have a degenerative effect on the wider arts scene in Sheffield.
o Why were York and Leeds chosen over Sheffield when both cities have a stronger tourist economy, more robust arts infrastructure and greater investment from the Arts Council already – surely Sheffield needs this support most.
o ACE’s allocation of Renaissance funding is unbalanced – central England inc. Sheffield, Nottingham, Derby and Leicester all unsuccessful in their bids. London, Oxford and Cambridge all successful – rich cities and services getting richer and poor ones getting poorer.
o Finally a call to reverse the decision/ find other ways of supporting Museums Sheffield.

If you’re a Sheffield resident its also worth contacting your local councillors and MPs imploring for local government to support Museums Sheffield in the absence of Arts Council funding.

o Museums Sheffield provides an excellent and museums service which will now be compromised – you might want to include your favourite exhibitions of the past few years.
o The people who will suffer from this are Sheffield residents from all areas and backgrounds.
o A decimated museums service will have a degenerative effect on the wider arts scene in Sheffield.
o Despite difficult budgeting decisions it’s time for Sheffield City Council to invest in culture in Sheffield in order to enjoy economic and social returns.
o Finally entreat them to protest at the Arts Councils decision and support Museums Sheffield via local government funding.

Thanks for standing up for Culture in Sheffield!

Please pass the message round friends and colleagues you think would be interested.